The 10 Best Lip Balms for Dry, Cracked, and Peeling Lips in 2026, Tested By Beauty Experts

I’ve used this lip balm on and off since it launched in 2023. I love its a trifecta of lip-smoothing and nourishing ingredients—more on that in a bit—that instantly softens my very dry lips. After a few wears, I only have to swipe on this balm twice a day for long-lasting moisture. My mouth no longer feels dry and cracked, and my lipliners and lipsticks glide on easily when used on top of this product.

With prolonged use—it was my daily go-to for over two years—my lips were consistently smooth, soft, and nourished. Truthfully, I only switch things up because I love trying newness for work reviews and still gift this balm to my parents every birthday and Christmas.

Dr. Song credits the blend of restorative shea butter, moisturizing vitamin B5, and the brand's patented thermal spring water as a win for repairing and soothing damaged lips. The thermal water hails from La Roche-Posay, France (naturally), and contains selenium, an antioxidant-rich mineral.

Despite the richer consistency, this balm melts like butter. It lasts for hours without needing reapplication, and it’s only $10, which is a major plus. Just keep in mind how much product you use—if you squeeze out too much balm it’ll look ashy. FWIW, La Roche-Posay keeps my lips feeling moisturized and protected year-round.

For our annual Skincare Awards package, WH's beauty team tested hundreds of new beauty products. Mogg crowned this new drop her ultimate lip balm because it delivers intense moisture, comes in sheer colors, and the fun packaging.

A blend of zinc, copper, and magnesium hydrates her dry lips and banana juice retains moisture even after she rubs excess product off. It's also infused with coconut and aloe extracts to condition and smoothen chapped lips, which earned it a permanent spot in Mogg's daily beauty routine.

Her favorite part about this balm is by far the deliciously sweet scent and fruity flavors. Mogg found the aromas so enticing that she was tempted to eat them. Milk Makeup is available in seven colors, including Quench, a brown beige with a coconut flavor Werk Out, dusty rose that tastes like watermelon. melon punch flavor.

Associate fitness editor Olivia Luppino is also a fan because it applies smoothly and nourishes her lips. She says it’s also only slightly sticky compared to the other lip balms she tested, such as Aquaphor and rhode.

Though we fully stand behind this pick, the fruity smell lingers—you should skip it if you don't enjoy sweet scents.

If the word "plumper" scares you, don't worry—BeautyStat doesn't contain menthol, so it won't cause that uncomfortable tingly feeling. Instead, it relies on a trifecta of peptides to hydrate and plump fine lines for a fuller pout. The volumized look—elimination of lip lines and feathering—lasted up to two hours, and the hydration lingered longer. Most importantly, the results are subtle without painful injections, which is always a win. It just makes your lips look super shiny and, if we do say so ourselves, kissable.

BeautyStat also blends sodium hyaluronate and squalane for extra hydration without feeling heavy or goopy on my lips. Its lightweight texture coats my lips in four colors—ranging from Natural Peach and Baby Pink to my personal favorite Butter Beige, a neutral-pink with a light coat of color. There’s also Mocha, a rich brown that works on looks gorgeous on both melanin-rich and fair complexions.

It’s also packed with zinc oxide, a mineral SPF that doesn’t leave behind an ashy tint to my lips. It’s also gentle compared to chemical active ingredients, like avobenzone. Not to mention it’s enriched with vitamin C to help repair environmental damage and brighten an uneven skin tone.

Best of all? There’s no off-putting fragrance. Just a light, vanilla-creamsicle scent that adds a welcome touch of summer.

Ask anyone what their go-to moisturizing lip products are, and you're almost guaranteed to hear this one as a common response—just ask Dr. Shokeen, who tells me it's one of her all-time favorites. It’s packed with a mixture of hyaluronic acid, minerals, and antioxidants that work to mend and revitalize dry, chapped lips, making it perfect for overnight hydration, she says.

This has been in my rotation since 2021 for deep moisture while I snooze. I love how thick and moisturizing it feels, my lips feel juicy in the morning. The wearability is also on point—I can swipe on once or twice daily and I’m good to go.

Need more proof that Laneige locks in moisture overnight? Colbert fell asleep with it on and woke up facing the fan with lips still soft and moisturized. “It’s perfect after exfoliating and lasts through a night of tossing and turning,” she says.

Laneige is also one of the rare lip masks that includes a tiny spatula for mess-free application. The spatula elevates my self-care routine and ensures that I scoop the last drop of product before I reorder a replacement. “This one mixes the usual moisturizing suspects like shea butter and natural oils with peptides to plump,” said Underwood.

Ask anyone what their go-to moisturizing lip products are, and you're almost guaranteed to hear this one as a common response—just ask Dr. Shokeen, who tells me it's one of her all-time favorites. It’s packed with a mixture of hyaluronic acid, minerals, and antioxidants that work to mend and revitalize dry, chapped lips, making it perfect for overnight hydration, she says.

I personally love all the fun flavors it comes in (there are eight options on Amazon), but if fragrances aren't your thing, you might not love this product as much as I do.

Both Hailey Bieber and her skincare brand, Rhode, have become synonymous with "glazed donut skin," and this moisturizing lip treatment gives my lips that same effect. Most lip glosses leave behind a sticky feel or oily finish, but not Rhode. It provides a super-hydrating feel, with a glossy finish and non-sticky feel. No wonder we crowned it the best lip treatment in our 2023 Beauty Awards. “This one mixes the usual moisturizing suspects like shea butter and natural oils with peptides to plump,” says Underwood.

And we’re not the only fans. Dermatologist Azadeh Shirazi, MD, highlights the combination of nourishing shea butter and collagen-supporting, lip-plumping peptides as standout ingredients. It’s also made with vitamin E, which retains moisture and provides antioxidant protection. Dr. Shirazi likes the rich texture, which helps hydrate and protect dry lips.

While the option linked here is the unscented version, you can buy the balm in four additional flavors: strawberry, salted caramel, vanilla, and watermelon. FWIW, Luppino is a big fan of the unscented version because she prefers a natural look with a glossy finish.

I adore Rhode, but Luppino says it’s the thickest and stickiest lip balm, so she doesn’t use it daily. That said, it’s still a nourishing balm with a glossy finish—and it plays nicely with makeup or when layered on its own. And FWIW, I found the tinted versions aren’t grainy. Espresso layered over a pinky-nude lipstick, like my holy grail Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk Original is a stunning combination.

If you want to go the natural route, I have just the pick for you: evolvetogether's plant-powered lip balm, which taps coconut oil, shea butter, and jojoba seed oil to coat the lips in a smooth, buttery veil. The best part? There's zero thick or sticky residue left behind. Just the satiny feeling of the natural butters, lavender and chamomile oils. Dr. Song notes the simple and clean formula is effective for light moisture, making it a great fit for anyone who hates the goopy feeling of thicker lip masks or lives somewhere warm year-round.

When Dr. Song says light moisture, she really means it. Colbert likes it for daily wear, but needed to reapply frequently after riding on the back of her friend’s motorcycle for 20 minutes. “When I apply it after my skincare routine I can sit through a few hours of TV and doomscrolling and still have my lips feeling moisturized,” she says.

I love that this balm is available in two different scents—Provence and Anguilla—to suit your mood. I’ve only tried Provence, which is a mix of chamomile, lavender, and vanilla. It smells gorgeous and fresh—never overpowering.

Something to note: This formula contains beeswax, so it's not a great option for the vegans out there.

Laneige remains my favorite lip mask, but this one from Ilia is completely unscented, which is great if you have a sensitive nose or skin. I keep this formula in my work tote because I'm not always in the mood for an aroma, but it also never slacks on deep hydration. After applying it nightly for a month, my lips always felt super moisturized and never chapped, which is a huge plus.

“There's nothing worse to me than an artificial fruit taste accidentally getting in my mouth,” says Ritchey. She’s a big fan of this fragrance-free balm and highlights its non-sticky, super moisturizing formula. left her lips feeling brand new after application. “It’s not overly sticky, but super moisturizing—my lips would feel brand new after putting it on.”

What else makes it a noteworthy inclusion? Ilia combines salicornia, which is a type of flowering plant, with hyaluronic acid to boost hydration and support the skin barrier, says dermatologist Marissa Garshick, MD. It also contains papaya enzymes, which help to get rid of dead skin cells. Due to the fruit's exfoliating properties, you should only use this twice daily to avoid overscrubbing your lips.

The only downside with this lip mask is that it comes in a pot instead of a squeezable tube, so it’s not as clean when applying. For Ritchey and her longer nails that’s a minor problem. “It's difficult to get the product out of the container, especially when it's towards the bottom,” she says. “However, the product is good enough that it's worth living with the difficult container!” If you’re also sporting longer nails, this balm easily applies with a cotton bud. And since it’s clear, don’t be surprised if your partner tries to swipe this one from your medicine cabinet. Yup, it’s that good.

This Women's Health Skincare Award-winning balm features a piña colada–esque flavor that brings a tropical touch to Underwood’s mornings. But most importantly, it’s an untinted SPF lip balm that doesn’t have the unpleasant sunscreen taste. We like to wear it on its own each morning for the most natural appearance.

We're also impressed by the epic lineup of nourishing ingredients, like lanolin. Research shows that lanolin hydrates so well that it reduces TEWL by up to 30%, ensuring our lips are amply moisturized. The thicker formula is also infused with a plethora of castor seed oil, beeswax, shea butter, grape seed oil, vitamin E, and coconut oil. This broad-spectrum sunscreen combines four types of active chemical ingredients that provide SPF 30 coverage that avoids a white cast.

The only limitation to this balm? We need a separate lip balm for nighttime—wearing SPF to bed doesn't make sense since we’re not exposed to harmful ultraviolet rays while we slumber.